#22: Figurati!

Ciao Nonni!

This week we said arrivederci to Nonna Flavia after her stay with us these last 10 days. It has been so lovely to have her here with us, and to share our Italian life with another visitor. Every time we welcome a new family member or friend, it opens my eyes once again to how lucky we are to be here and how perfect this town is for us. Not everything is easy, but it is beautiful - and if that doesn't just sum up the Italian experience, then I don't know what does!

Christmas and the end of the year are approaching at a rapid pace, and the impending fourth birthday is making everything extra busy in this household. My main coping strategy is to fortify myself daily with a generous slab of panettone with my morning coffee.

We're slowly working our way through a broad range of brands, from the five euro bargains at the supermarket through to the artisanal handmade creations sold by local pasticcerie. Happily, we have yet to endure a disappointing one!

As well as festive planning, our daily life continues. School runs right up until 22 December for the bambini, as do my Italian classes. 

I learnt a fabulous new word this week. Figurati. It means 'don't worry about it', or something like that. There isn't really a direct translation. And now that I know it, I am hearing it everywhere.

I love these phrases that aren't necessarily taught in language classes, but make up so much of everyday communication. Another example is 'tutto a posto'. Sometimes shortened to just 'a posto'. When we first arrived here, we heard it everywhere, but we didn't know what it meant. The literal translation is pretty easy to figure out - everything in its place. The practical application left us confounded though.

I can't remember who explained it eventually, but it essentially signals that you are happy with the current situation. That everything is fine. It applies perfectly in so many scenarios, and it always elicits a positive response from a local when you use it.

While my Italian is still rudimentary at best, these last few weeks I have been really trying to force myself to try and speak more. Even though I know I'm not saying everything perfectly. Often I will end up horribly butchering verb conjugations, tenses, and even genders, but most of the time I can make myself understood. And I always come away from these interactions having learnt something new about the language. I'm finally learning that it doesn't so much take confidence as just sheer courage!

I expect the coming week will have the tiniest hint of bittersweetness. We are going to miss everyone at Christmas, but I hope that you all know that we are sending our love across the oceans. Please have a glass of prosecco for me!

All my love and an extra big hug for Monday. I will be thinking of you all day.